TTHM
by InsomniAsylum
Summary: This is a story mainly about Squee and Johnny... Read and review Disclaimer: I do NOT own any of the Characters, places, names,or memories in this story...I am merely a girl writing her fanfiction.
1. Return To Hell

"_I just thought I'd come over and tell you that I was leaving"_

"_Are you moving away?"_

"_Nah, just taking a bit of a vacation, but that means I won't be here to keep you safe. You'll have to be extra careful. I'll be back soon."_

Johnny? _Hello_? Did you even hear a _word_ of what I just said?"

Johnny blinked, coming out of his daydream to find that he was staring blankly at a wall.

"Huh?"

"I said 'you promised to take me out somewhere today', but you weren't even listening!"

Johnny blinked again.

"I did say I would didn't I?" He said to himself.

Aidan sighed and sat down on her couch next to her boyfriend, pulling her legs up under her and resting her head close to Johnny's but not touching. He didn't like it when people touched him. She never, for the life of her could understand why.

"Why do you always get so quiet and spacey?" she asked.

Johnny shrugged, but he knew exactly why. He'd left someone behind in his eager attempt to forget his past.

An eight- year- old boy who always trembled and squeaked. How long had it been? Nine years? That would make Squee...Seventeen. He himself was twenty-seven. He never did go back, but it was for his own good. Squee or no Squee, That place held haunting memories of his past; of the horrible, unspeakable treacheries he'd done. Even so, he still had this nagging demon in the pit of his stomach to contend with every day.

"Johnny, you're doing it _again_!" Aidan whined, jolting him, once again, back to the present.

"Sorry," Johnny said offhandedly.

Aidan sucked in her breath and let it out again in a big sigh.

"Okay, I can tell you've got something on your mind -" she said. "-So tell me what it is and maybe I can help?"

Johnny shook his head and gritted his teeth together in defiance, but then slowly began to speak.

"Nine years ago... I lived in another town about three hours from here. In that town, I...did...things. There was this kid and – God, I don't know." Johnny said.

Aidan frowned and then began to speak quietly, choosing her words carefully.

"Did you ...mol -"

"NO!" Johnny yelled, horrified at the suggestion. "Never! I just... I was very violent" he finished.

Aidan and Johnny sat on the couch in silence for quite a while, watching the silent screen of her television flicker with news reports. A Frooty Pops commercial. Yummy.

Aidan cleared her throat meaningfully.

"I think you should go back and see him again. The little boy, I mean, you know?"

Johnny felt a little perturbed that she was meddling in something she had no say in, but she was right, wasn't she? Maybe he _should_ go visit Squee, just to see how he'd changed in his adolescence. He really didn't want to go back , as much as he wanted to see him again. He'd left that place for a reason and up until now, it had all been dead to him; just memories of the past and nothing more. He had not changed at all, though, except for his sleeping and eating now...and he didn't kill.

Finally, he made up his mind.

"Alright, I'll go...right now. Let's get it over with."


	2. A Meeting of Sorts

It was about 3:00 a.m. when Johnny finally arrived at the 24/7 downtown from his old house. He pocketed his car keys and went into the store. A tired-looking man sat at the register reading a book with the title "How to Be a Jackass for Dummies". Were these people always so easy to read before you'd even said a word to them? His eyes lit up as the sight of the old BrainFreezy machine seemed to glitter into Johnny's view. "Cherry Doom" was still there, right in the middle of "Frosty Peanut" and "Icy Ham". Johnny stuck his tongue out in disgust. What were people thinking these days? He walked over to them and wondered if they were even on... It was 3:00 and they shut the machine off at 2:00 a.m. usually. Despite this knowledge, he walked over to it and tugged on the lever for "Cherry Doom". Sure enough, it wouldn't work; it only made an annoying high-pitched, mechanical, squealing noise. Johnny lowered his head somewhat sadly.

"It's not been working for quite a while; if you want one, go away and come back in _six hours_ when everyone's awake," said the store clerk.

"_Why you insolent little ass tick!" _Johnny thought to the clerk.

"Oh, I see... I'll come back later then," Johnny said, ignoring the sound of the bell as someone not too significant to him walked in.

"_Or maybe I should mangle you_..." he added in his head.

"Well, whatever you do, don't try that machine; it gives me a friggen headache five times a day when some dumbshit like you tries to get one,"

the clerk said to Johnny's turned back.

Johnny skreeked to a halt and turned back around slowly.

"You open _ass sore_! Why don't you just throw salt in my eyes and stomp on my head while you're at it? _You are the_ _rudest fucking person I've ever met!"_ Johnny's uproar only half-startled the clerk.

"What are you going to do about that, sir?" asked the clerk sarcastically.

"I'm going to hideously mar and mangle your body and dump it in the nearest trash ca-" Johnny stopped in mid threat as the sound of a slush hitting the bottom of a paper cup met his ears. He whirled around quickly and saw the person who'd come in earlier putting a lid on his red BrainFreezy. Johnny stalked over to the teen and glared.

"How did you do that?" he asked.

The strange teen looked Johnny straight in the eye.

"You have to kick it; they don't turn them off anymore...I...complained to one of the clerks one day," the boy said slowly.

"Come on, I'll show you what I mean..."

Johnny took in the boy's appearance as he led him back to the BrainFreezy machine. He was about an inch shorter than himself and had short, black hair hanging down to just above his thin shoulders, cut in a razor-like fashion. He was wearing baggy, chainy, strappy, black pants that were so long, Johnny could only see the toes of his black combat boots. His shirt fit him nicely and Johnny could see that, underneath the black-and-white striped T-shirt, this child was emaciated. That wasn't the last of it though. He also has blood spattered on his hands and face, and an open wound in his left hand was still bleeding freely. The teen gave the machine a rough kick despite the "Please don't kick me" sign and then handed Johnny a paper cup.

"Don't hurt yourself trying to fill it up," the boy said, smirking and walking out of the convenience store.

Johnny had paid for his Freezy and was now driving along the street searching for the boy he'd seen just moments before. After a minute's driving he found the kid, walking down the street and drinking his own Freezy. He pulled up to drive slowly along side the boy and rolled his window down.

"Hey!" he called out.

The boy turned around and glared at Johnny's intrusion on his thoughts.

"What do you want now?" the boy asked impatiently.

Johnny, who continued to drive along with the boy's unstopping movement, smiled.

"If you're walking home, I could always give you a ride..._Squee_."


	3. Guess where Squee lives?

The wind blew through the trees, giving off and eerie sound through the teeming darkness. Out on the street, Johnny's car rumbled and a young man stood next to it, dumbstruck.

"How do you know my nickname?" he managed to say after a little while.

Johnny smiled and opened his car door for the teen.

"I'm the one that gave it to you; get in," he said.

Todd climbed into the passenger seat and shut the car door as Johnny began to drive toward town. He seemed to be thinking very hard about something and soon a look of realization washed across his face.

"_Johnny?"_ He said finally.

Johnny took his eyes off the road to stare at Todd.

"_Honestly_, to think you would have forgotten about me..."

"I was eight when you left, Nny!" Todd said, still shocked to be sitting beside him.

"And besides that...it's the weirdest thing, but I can't remember almost anything. My past is all...fuzzy, for lack of a better word."

Johnny understood completely, what with his parents and Shmee and all...

"Your dad still around? Your mom?" Johnny asked, glancing at Todd.

Todd grew quiet, and an odd expression that chilled Johnny to the bone crossed the young teen's face.

"Don't ever talk about them again," Todd said quietly, but firmly.

Johnny eyed him curiously, opening his mouth to say something, but he thought better of it and shut it. It was pretty obvious what had most likely happened; especially seeing Todd all covered in blood like that. He decided it would be best to confront him about _that_ later.

"Todd do you- "

"Stop here; I live here," Todd said, cutting Johnny's question short.

Johnny slammed on the brakes, causing the car to lurch to a stop as he stared in horror at where they were. His old house... one of the three sevens was now hanging upside down by a screw, and the glass had been replaced on the windows. Other than those two differences, the house had not changed at all.

"You can come in," Todd said tonelessly, unbuckling his seatbelt and climbing out of the car.

It took Johnny a while to process this information before he turned the car off and got out. The air had traces of a light, coppery scent and the usually disturbed soil in the front yard had settled and was beginning to sprout weeds. Johnny made it to about halfway up the sidewalk before he saw the sign that he himself had painted in the yard years before:

**KeEp oFf!**

**iT's iMpOLiTe**

**To WaLk On ThE dEaD!**

Todd, who'd left the door open , came back to the doorway and crossed his arms.

"Are you coming in or not?"

In answer, Johnny vomited into the dirt yard.


	4. Cleaning Up

Damp, dark, musty, and dirty…..

The house was exactly as Johnny had left it. Not a single dagger out of place. He sat on the edge of the moth-eaten sofa in the living room and waited for Todd to return with the glass of water he promised just earlier. There were so many bad memories that clung to him here, like a thick, red coat of blood. Johnny heard soft footsteps and Todd emerged from the dreariness of the house with a glass of water.

"It's tap water…I don't have anything else," Todd said, sitting next to Johnny.

The couch made a dull moan of withered protest as he sat. Johnny accepted the glass, taking note that there was quite a bit of blood smeared on the sides, which prompted him to bring up the question he had wanted to ask Todd in the car. He didn't want to, but he saw, standing in front of him, the very thing that _he_ was in his own past. Johnny just didn't know how to begin to confront him…

"Squee…," Johnny started, looking down at the floor, unable to look the teen in his face,

"Squee, how did you get so bloody?"

Todd, too, looked down, but at his hands, all covered in blood.

"I was cleaning up," he said dismissively.

"Cleaning up? How did that get you all bloody?" Johnny said skeptically.

Todd's face broke into a small smile that chilled Johnny to the bone. It was the smile of a maniac, the smile of someone lost and uncouth….it was the same smile he'd seen in himself when he was in despair… Without even having to hear it, Johnny knew what Todd had meant by "_cleaning up_"…He blamed himself. All those years of torment he caused this little child ; he just wanted Todd to grow up wise and able to take care of himself… never did he imagine this.

"What's wrong Johnny?" Todd said, smiling that treacherous smile.

"Don't you want to know what I do for fun?"

Johnny balked and stared hard at Squee. "Todd, killing innocent people isn't _fun_, it's wrong and sick…, what happened to you? This isn't what I wanted you to become… not at all…how-?"

Todd narrowed his eyes at the former murderer.

"Nine years, Nny…." Todd started.

Johnny winced as his old nickname was said.

"You left me alone for nine years…Do you even remember the last time we saw each other? I do….You had smashed my father over the head with a toy robot…then you left…DO YOU HAVE ANY FUCKING IDEA WHAT HE DID TO ME WHEN HE WOKE UP?" Todd yelled suddenly, causing Johnny to jump.

"I'll tell you what he did, Nny…He blamed _me_ for it….I remember holding onto Shmee and hearing him whisper to me 'Your daddy's going to _kill_ you Squee! You have to get _him_ first! Take a knife…just take that knife that the bad Neighbor man left and…..' and I did…"

Todd fell silent, closing his eyes and allowing two tears to fall down his cheeks. He held himself and shook, just like the little Squeegee he remembered, but he wasn't done.

"After I had…cleaned up in the bathroom, I heard my mom from her bedroom; She'd overdosed on some medication she always took…she didn't even know who I was when I came to her bedside… Shmee said it would be like being reborn. Like feeling free and unchained to my disgusting mother… I would have no mother, he had said… I could be my own parents…"

Johnny felt sick to his stomach again… "Killing is sick and wrong, Squee…I didn't want this…"

Suddenly, without warning, Todd was on his feet. "Who are _you _to tell me what's wrong or sick?" Todd shrieked at him. "Johnny, I've lived my life in _your_ footsteps! I found your journals and I've read your life front to back….I wanted to be just like you, and now I am… It's wonderful! I agree with your every thought…The world is full of scum…disgusting, writhing, sick, twisted, selfish people who would backstab each other at any given time, and I, like _you _once were, will be there to clean up after them!"

Todd's unpredictable temper was out of control and Johnny could all but hold onto the edge of the seat to protect himself.

Todd finished his rant and stood staring at Johnny, daring him to judge and criticize, but Johnny had something else on his mind. He stood up and walked into his old bedroom hoping against all hopes he would find what he was looking for. Todd stood in the doorway, peering in at him with a confused look on his face. It was damp and dusty in this room, as if it hadn't been touched in years.

"I never came in here…" Todd said quietly.

"Maybe you should have, because you've missed out on an important part of me," Johnny said.

He finally seemed to remember where he'd stashed what he was looking for and lifted the dusty old mattress, and lifted an old frame from the floor.

Blowing the dust off of it and wiping it clean, he brought it over to Todd, who waited curiously by the door. Johnny looked down at the old picture and smiled…

"Look, Squee, something you missed," he said handing it to the teen.

Todd looked over the girl with purple hair in the photo.

"I don't get it? What's this supposed to prove?" Squee said indignantly.

"Love, Todd! Love and lust! I was head over heels with this girl…her name is Devi," Johnny said somewhat awkwardly.

"You…_loved_ this girl?" Todd said incredulously…

What Todd said next would throw Johnny over the edge with guilt, frustration and fear…

"Didn't you try to kill _he_r too? You can't escape your past Nny….I am your past…and I'm going to see to it that your legacy remains."


	5. Voices

Somewhere, deep within the chasm of Johnny's brain, unbeknownst to Todd, something snapped. As if in slow motion, between the times it took Todd to let go of the picture, and the picture shattering on the floor, Johnny had him backed up viciously against the wall, and had pulled two swords out of a random hiding spot that only Johnny himself could have found that quickly. He had them crossed at Todd's neck like a pair of blood-rusted scissors.

"I ought to slice your little self-righteous head right off your body, you little ungrateful piece of Shmee-shit!" Johnny hissed malevolently.

Todd's eyes traveled from Johnny's face to the twin blades he was standing threatened with, and, to Johnny's surprise, he smiled slyly.

"You're only proving my point for me if you behead me, Nny," Todd said in dark tones.

Johnny blinked. Todd was right…he couldn't escape his past. It had become almost unbearable _not_ to revert back to his old ways. Todd took this short space of time Johnny had used to think and ducked out from under the swords, turning his back and walking out into the living room.

"Squee, I'm sorry…I- Oww!"

Johnny's apology was cut short as Todd turned around quickly; using the force of his spin to send two throwing knives straight at Johnny. Johnny felt a searing explosion of pain ripple through him as the knives penetrated his hands and pinned him to the wall like some weird science project. Todd smiled mischievously and slinked up to him like a demon.

"It's okay, Nny. Just, never underestimate exactly how close I've come to being you."

Todd had graciously let Johnny down from the wall and had told Johnny to stay put while he went out to run an errand. That gave Johnny all the time in the world to second-guess his plan for changing into a good citizen. Nine years ago, he was invincible. He could have walked into a police station and disemboweled everyone in the place and then walked out scott-free. He never worried about sleep, so he didn't have to wake up wondering whether or not he was still dreaming. He never could get caught or harmed.

"_Johnnny,"_

Johnny bolted upright and looked around. Was Todd back so soon? There was no sign of him anywhere.

"_Johnnnny,…down the ssstairssss,"_

The soft, quiet, singsong voice echoed out once more, sending chills down his spine.

He remembered this voice from somewhere…suddenly, the basement door creaked open a crack, letting all kinds of horrible smells waft up from the hellish caverns. Johnny stood up and slowly made his way to the door, reaching for the knob. It was cold like his body…should he even go down there?

"_Johnny…now…come…"_

Johnny hesitated; this was a new voice, a little more menacing than the first. He had to find out who was calling to him. Holding his breath, (out of nervousness _and_ because it smelled like shit), he swung open the door and took the first two steps slowly. The darkness teemed around him; it was familiar but strange. He decided maybe he shouldn't go down there at all. Just as he turned around to go out, the door slammed shut in his face, and he fell down the stairs, landing with a thud at the bottom.

"Ouch…." He said softly.

He climbed to his feet and dusted himself off, staring into complete darkness. The smell of the cellar was almost poisoning. Light…he needed a light… he remembered something finally and felt along the wall to his right until his hand ran into a lever. He pulled it all the way down.

"_AAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGGG!" _

The sound of electricity filled the air, and Johnny could see the figure of a man illuminated like an x-ray across the room. Johnny pushed the lever back up into place.

"Um, Sorry, wrong lever…" He said to the screaming voice in the dark

"You fucking bastard…one more time! Do it one more time, I swear! The cops will be looking for you!" The voice yelled back.

On second thought…

_BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZTTTTTTT_

Johnny kept the lever down until the man's screams were reduced to a frail wheezing noise. Then he found the lever for the overhead light and turned it on. The room was instantly flooded with a yellowish fluorescent glow. Johnny took note that the man in the electric chair had become quiet and lifeless. It made him smirk. He looked around the room and saw a skeleton on the ground, with hooks attached to the rib cage, prying them apart and anchoring them down to the floor with chains.

"Well, hello there, Jimmy! Fancy meeting you down here," Johnny said to the grinning skull. He stepped past it and into a corridor that led to more stairs leading downward.

"_Johnnny…"_

"I hear you! But I don't know who 'You' are…" Johnny said, more to himself than to the disembodied voice. If he was going to find out, he'd have to go investigate… He went down the next flight of stairs and shut the door behind him. The little hand painted sign on the back of the door swung back and forth with a nauseating reminder to the man in the electric chair.

If You Can Read This,

You're not dead yet…


End file.
